Hitting the snooze button can be a temptation on many mornings, but now an extra few minutes sleeping in can help raise funds for charity, courtesy of fundraising alarm clock appiCukoo from Chelsea Apps Factory.

Every time you snooze, you donate a small amount to one of five charities – Maggie’s, the National Literacy Trust, Parkinson’s UK, Prostate Cancer UK, and Starlight. The charities can provide their supporters with a code which, when entered, will ensure that the app sets that charity as the default beneficiary.

For example:

Once you've downloaded the fabulous #iCukoo from the App Store, use promo code STAR01 to select @Starlightmagic as your chosen charity.

How it raises funds

1. set the iCukoo alarm on your iPhone or iPad (iCukoo is available on iTunes but an Android version is in the works). 2. select the charity you want to support 3. decide how much each lie-in is worth: you can choose from 10p to £1.

The app will record how many times you opt for the snooze. There is no in-app donation or payment. Instead, when your pledge has added up to £1, you receive a text asking if you want to donate that amount, or let the total build up via more snoozes. The maximum amount is capped at £30 per month per user.

Chelsea Apps Factory works with a number of for-profit clients including Waitrose and Ladbrokes, but iCukoo is its first consumer-facing app. Partner Josh Hart said:

“Mobile software is now so intrinsic to our lives – we all spend money with apps. This is one of those opportunities where we as consumers can take something we do every day, snoozing, and, using an app, meld it with something we should be doing every day – helping others. And there’s the added benefit that we’ll be snoozing guilt free from now on!”

Neil Swan of Starlight commented:

“This is a beautifully simple way to help charity and get up in time for breakfast too. We are encouraging all our supporters to download this cute little app and, occasionally, snooze a little to help grant a wish for our seriously and terminally ill children”.

About Howard Lake

Howard Lake is a digital fundraising entrepreneur. Publisher of UK Fundraising, the world's first web resource for professional fundraisers, since 1994. Trainer and consultant in digital fundraising. Founder of Fundraising Camp.

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